How to Roast a Leg of Lamb

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Leg of lamb is a popular holiday dish to serve at Passover and Easter, but it's so simple to make that it needn't be reserved for a special occasion. The trickiest part isn't roasting the lamb, but picking out a good-quality cut. After that, you simply cover the meat in spices, roast it, and slice it to serve. See Step 1 to learn more about how to roast a leg of lamb.

Buy from a high-quality butcher. When you're planning to make roasted leg of lamb, buy the lamb from a butcher you know and trust, rather than picking it up on sale from the grocery store. That's because the quality of the meat will have a big impact on the taste of the finished roast. Ask for a leg of lamb at market weight, meaning it was butchered at the proper age.[1]

Lamb that's below market weight was butchered too early. Butchering a baby lamb is unethical and isn't a common practice among reputable farmers and butchers.

Lamb that's over market weight was butchered later in the animal's life. Older meat will taste more like mutton (the meat of an adult sheep) than lamb. Mutton has a much stronger taste that some people find distasteful.

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Choose bone-in or boneless. Bone-in lamb, like other bone-in meats, tends to be more flavorful than boneless meat. As the bone cooks it releases juices that flavor the meat. However, bone-in lamb is a bit more difficult to cut than boneless, so you might find it easier to go with the boneless. Boneless meat usually comes in an oven-safe net or wrapped in twine, to keep the meat in the shape of a leg.

With the bone, a leg of lamb will weight about 6 1/2 to 8 pounds.

If your boneless leg of lamb does not come in an oven-safe net, use kitchen twine to tie the meat together in several spots along its length.

Get it with the shank or shankless. The part of the lamb's leg that is edible is the upper leg, or the thigh. The bottom part of the leg is called the shank. Some people like to roast the entire leg, for an impressive presentation, while others prefer to just use the top part of the leg. The shank doesn't have enough meat to eat, but you can use the bone as a soup base.[2]

Have the fat trimmed. If the butcher hasn't already trimmed away the fell, a thick cap of fat that encases the leg, have them do so. If you roast the lamb leg with the fell, it will be more likely to taste of mutton, and it will be less tender. However, don't have the butcher remove all of the fat. Keeping some of the fat intact will help to flavor the lamb and keep it moist.

Remove it from the refrigerator 1 hour before roasting. Bringing the meat to room temperature will ensure that it cooks evenly. If you put it in the oven cold, you may end up with an undercooked interior and burned exterior.

Rub the meat with spices. Lamb is so tender that it doesn't need to be marinated. You can follow a recipe to marinate the lamb, but it's easier to complement the meat's flavor with a simple rub. First, rub olive oil and a few tablespoons of lemon juice all over the lamb. Then, sprinkle the leg with salt, pepper and 3 tablespoons or so of your favorite spices. Try the following, either alone or in combination:

Reduce the heat and continue roasting. Turn it down to 350 °F (177 °C) for the remainder of the roasting time. Roast for another 30 minutes to an hour or more, depending on your preferred level of doneness. No matter what, use a meat thermometer to check the meat's temperature after about an hour to see how the lamb is progressing. Here are the general guidelines for roasting times:

Remove the lamb from the oven and let it rest. Give it at least 15 minutes before you start carving the meat. This allows time for the lamb's juices to absorb back into the leg, which will make the meat more flavorful and moist.

Carve the lamb. If you used boneless lamb, simple cut it into 1-inch thick slices. For bone-in lamb, set the leg on a cutting board. Make perpendicular cuts an inch apart down the length of the leg, using a sharp knife to cut until the knife hits the bone. Stand the leg on its tip and use the knife to cut parallel to the bone so that the meat falls off in slices.

Serve the lamb with sauce. Leg of lamb is traditionally served with a mint sauce or a gravy. The tender meat tastes delicious with a complementary sauce, and these choices don't take much extra time to make.

To make lamb gravy, pour the drippings from the roasting pan into a small saucepan and heat it to medium high. Add 1 chopped onion and sauté until translucent. Add 1 cup chicken stock and 1/2 cup wine, and simmer until it thickens. Season with salt and pepper. Pour over the lamb slices to serve.

Store the leftovers. Leftover lamb will keep in the refrigerator for 3 days. You can also freeze lamb by wrapping the slices individually in aluminum foil, then reheating them as needed in an oven heated to 350 °F (177 °C).

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wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. To create this article, 14 people, some anonymous, worked to edit and improve it over time.

To roast a leg of lamb, start by removing the meat from the refrigerator for 1 hour to bring it to room temperature. Next, rub olive oil and lemon juice all over the lamb and sprinkle it with salt, pepper, and any herb you like, such as rosemary or sage. Then, place the lamb in a roasting pan and roast for 30 minutes at 400°F. After that, reduce the heat to 350°F and cook for another 30 minutes to 1 hour. Finally, let the lamb cool for 15 minutes, then serve with a mint sauce or gravy.